Unforgiven

I was struck this past week in this 3rd chapter of Mark, as we are going through Mark in Sunday Worship, how much this passage helps to lead me into passion week. 


Mar 3:1-6  "Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man with the withered hand, "Come here." And he said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?" But they were silent. And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.  The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him." 


The stark contrast here of the religious bigots; Those who love their own righteous actions, and use their adherence to certain actions in order to proclaim superiority over others. Over against the absolute love of Jesus Christ is overwhelming. 
Religious adherence is about rules. God's absolute love is about healing.
Religious adherence is about, anger over personal rejection. God's absolute love is about anger over insensitivity to the Spirit of God and our fellow image bearers. 
Religious adherence is about sitting in a room and plotting how to silence those who don't conform. God's absolute love is about being different in order to make a difference in other people's lives. 
Religious adherence is about destruction of those who are stronger to maintain strength. God's absolute love is about healing those who are weak and in need, in order to give strength away. 


Religious adherence is about maintaining fear. God's absolute love is about establishing hope, that causes people to be built up in faith and be established in love. 


People are hungry for God's absolute love. Satan flees from absolute love. He can not stand before the presence of God' s absolute love.  


Mar 3:7-12  "Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great crowd followed, from Galilee and Judea  and Jerusalem and Idumea and from beyond the Jordan and from around Tyre and Sidon. When the great crowd heard all that he was doing, they came to him.  And he told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they crush him,  for he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed around him to touch him.  And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, "You are the Son of God." And he strictly ordered them not to make him known." 


Religious bigots, and politically minded leaders hate being challenged. What they love to do is advertise indiscriminate lies and distorted opinions of opponents in order to discredit them. How can we spin this in order to get rid of the threat? 
For leaders of the Jewish community at the time of Jesus, even though they should have clearly seen the miracles of healing and restoration as a sign of God's presence- Yahweh among them, they could not see past their own self-righteousness. 


Here was the promise. Satan was being thrown down right before their own eyes. 
The binding of Satan and the plundering of His rule over this world was occurring- they could not see past their rules based system. Why? 
Because it was based on the very lies of Satan and demons. 


Mar 3:22-30  "And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, "He is possessed by Beelzebul," and "by the prince of demons he casts out the demons." And he called them to him and said to them in parables, "How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.  "Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter,  but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin"-- for they were saying, "He has an unclean spirit." 


The unforgivable sin- hardness of heart, rejection of love, unforgiveness, not recognizing God or Godliness. 
It is the sin we all carry and have no hope of being forgiven for apart from the sacrificial, substitutional, expiatiational, death of Jesus Christ. Throw all of your hope upon Him, He is Absolute Love. In all ways acknowledge His worth alone, we are made worthy in Him alone. 


In this week, in the days leading up to the passion of Jesus Christ think on what it is you have to present to Him in response to His brokenness-as for my contribution it could only be brokenness- contriteness heart and humility spirit that would be a worthy act of worship- celebrating Him. He is Absolute Love. 



Joh 1:29-34  "The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!  This is he of whom I said, 'After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.' I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel."  And John bore witness: "I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God."